CQC warns Bromford Housing Group Limited that is failing to protect the safety and welfare of people

The Care Quality Commission has issued a formal warning to Bromford Housing Group Limited that it must make urgent improvements to standards of care or face further action.

The warning follows an unannounced visit by inspectors to Royal Court, Fiddlers Green, Cheltenham, on 13 December 2011 in response to concerns.

Royal Court, which is registered as a care home, provides care for up to 48 people in self contained flats.

Inspectors found that the registered provider, Bromford Housing Group Limited, was failing to comply with the government standard which protects people against the risks of receiving care or treatment that is inappropriate or unsafe.

They had failed to ensure that the needs of service users were assessed. There was no evidence that they were carrying out regular assessments of people’s care needs.

They had not acted to make sure that the planning and delivery of care was carried out in such a way as to promote people’s individual needs and to ensure their safety.

Ian Biggs, regional director of CQC in the South region, said: "The law says that these are the standards that everyone should be able to expect. Providers have a duty to ensure they are compliant.

“This warning sends a clear and public message that Royal Court needs to address this issue as a matter of urgency or face serious consequences.

“Our inspectors will return to in the near future and if we find that it is not making the required progress we won’t hesitate to use our legal powers to protect the people who use the service."

Ends

For further information please contact the CQC press office on 0207 448 9401 or out of hours on 07917 232 143.

Notes to editors

CQC will publish further details of the inspectors’ findings in a review of compliance on its website at a later date. You can find previous reports on this provider at www.cqc.org.uk

CQC has issued a warning notice to Bromford Housing Group Limited requiring action to meet:

If these improvements are not made by set deadlines, CQC has a range of enforcement powers which include restricting the services that a provider can offer, or, in the most serious cases, suspending or cancelling a service. CQC can also issue financial penalty notices and cautions or prosecute the provider for failing to meet essential standards. Any regulatory decision that CQC takes is open to challenge by a registered person through a variety of internal and external appeal processes.